SBCC Vaquero Voices Hong Lieu, SBCC, Akil Hill

Akil and Hong welcome local restauranteur Piti Sukavivatanachai to the show to talk about owning one of Santa Barbara's best Thai restaurants, how his path to SBCC led him to UCLA and what brought him back home, and then discuss a new Omakase restaurant in the Funk Zone before shining a light on one of Netflix's most underrated shows and how the origins of the show tie back to Bruce Lee.

Akil and Hong welcome Christina Llerena to the show! Christina is the Dean of Student Affairs at the college, and beyond diving in to all of the areas under her purview, the trio discuss her path to SBCC from Detroit and then New York, and then dive deeper into Christina's favorite foods and pieces of culture. Items discussed include: burgers at the Kitchen at Calvary Chapel, Paella, Chicken Parmesan, Nedra Glover Tawwab, Astrology, Taylor Swift, and Depeche Mode

Hong and Akil welcome Jordan Killebrew to the show! Jordan is SBCC's new Executive Director of Public Affairs and Communications, and stops by to outline his plans for the office and position, his path to SBCC, and his love for soul food and Kathy Najimy. Along the way, the trio also discuss some of the best Chinese food in Santa Barbara, pomegranate season, and being patient with ourselves in navigating the world at large.

Akil and Hong welcome Jing Liu to the show! Jing is the new SBCC Director of International Programs, and the trio discuss how things are going for her so far; from there, Jing breaks down her path to SBCC from China to Florida to Santa Barbara, goes over her love of "brothy noodles" in "Good Eatin'," and blesses "Higher Learning" with a conversation on Matthew Desmond's new book Poverty, By America.

Akil and Hong welcome Superintendent/President Erika Endrijonas, Ph.D. to the show to talk about her path in higher education and her path (and return) to SBCC. From there, the trio do a DEEP dive into Erika's Thanksgiving meal planning, and then segue into a discussion of food writing and cookbooks as a way to peer into one's personality.

Akil and Hong welcome Dr. Dean Nevins to the show! Dean is the Executive Director of IT at the college, and the trio break down how IT works to serve students and the college and keep things working as best they can. From there, Dean charts out his path to SBCC, with stops in Japan and work on various projects sprinkled throughout the conversation. What follows after is the most extensive list of "good eatin'" ever shared on the show, along with a deep dive on pinball and arcade culture in "higher learning."